Home Sweet Home
by One More Time
Summary: At age twnetysix, Sakura is out on her own. She left Konoha six years ago. With problems sleeping, maybe the cure is somewhere home? SakuIno ShikaChou and a kickass OC team


**Author's Notes: Hiii :3 So I've returned. I know I should update my other story...but. I'm more occupied with this. Besides, some of the minor characters next chapter are kicking ass. OC's. Yeah you're just gonna hafta to find that out when I update. Anyways. Couples are main InoSaku and ShikaChou. But their grown up. :3**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Kay?**

The ceiling wasn't very pleasing to the eye. Sakura realized she had been staring at it for five hours. It was four in the morning and she couldn't sleep. This had always been an issue. She figured that it was just her upset stomach, but really her body was telling her was that she was homesick. Flipping her legs over, her feet touched the soft carpet of the hotel. With a frown, Sakura lifted herself off the mattress and entered the bathroom. It was a sudden change from nice carpet to freezing tile. Regardless, she had more to think about then her feet at the moment. She flipped the switch and light engulfed her. Sakura squinted her eyes, forgetting that thats what happens when you lay awake for five hours and get adjusted to the dark. Once it was easier to see, an image had appeared in front of her. If she looked passed the large bags under her eyes and her hair full of tangles from the tossing and turning, she would find a young woman about twenty-five. Haruno Sakura sighed loudly and ran shakey fingers through her long pink hair. After she left Konoha seven years ago, she had forgotten about her image and before she knew it, she could sit on her hair. Lately, Sakura had the habit it pulling it back into a loose ponytail that flopped on her back, with her bangs around her face.

She sighed and plopped down on the cool bathroom tile. Leaning her back against the wall, she closed her eyes and tried to think of everyone who was along side of her as a child.

Uzumaki Naruto was the first to pop into her mind. They were eighteen at the time. She remembered standing at the end of the road that led out of Konoha. It was early morning just as the sun was rising. Naruto had caught up with her. He pleaded her not to leave but when she refused over and over again, all he said was...

"Just promise me you'll come home."

And he was gone. Sakura shook her head at the thought. There were just too many memories in that village of Konoha. She pondered if anyone was still there. Maybe some of her friends got married and started a family. Others might have moved onto become sensei at the Academy. Or perhapes some left Konoha, like herself, and started a new life. She bit her lower lip. Uchiha Sasuke... Her life never was the same after him. Yes, he had been rescued, but what did she really expect? Sasuke to embrace her and tell her he loved her? He didn't do that to anyone. Not even Naruto. He was alive, but he was lifeless. Sasuke wouldn't talk, eat, or even remove himself from his bed. Sakura had even gone over to his house to nurse him, but he never even looked at her. It was like he was stuck in some other world that wouldn't let him come home to reality. No one knows if he accomplished his goal of killing his brother, Itachi. No one has seen him since Sasuke's rescue. Orochimaru is gone, as well. Some say he killed himself, fearing of his own power. Others say he was gone along with Itachi. It was hard for Sakura to believe some of the rumors. Most of them were just weird. Like his right hand man, Kabuto, killed him. She never liked to think that Orochimaru might still be apart of this world.

There were others on her mind. She wondered if Hyyuga Hinata ever got the courage to tell Naruto she loves him. Or if Rock Lee was a sensei himself, taking over for his own Gai sensei. Which made Kakashi enter her mind. She hoped he was doing alright. A smile had crept over her face as these memories flooded her brain. There were so many people Sakura didn't even realize were there her whole entire life. Temari, Kankurou, Neji, Tenten, Lee, Kiba, Shino, Hinata, Naruto, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Chouji, and... She stopped thinking and opened her eyes tiredly.

"Yamanaka Ino." She said outloud to herself, dryly. Sakura hadn't heard that name in years, let alone say it. She tried to remember all of those precious memories while she brought her knees up to her chest. Hugging them, Sakura closed her eyes as her mind took her else where...

_"Quit being so mopey! You're always mopey. Oh, and no fun. Did I mention that?" Ino teased. Sakura uncrossed her arms and forced a smile. _

_"I'm not mopey. I'm scared. Its been years since..." She paused. "Since I've talked to him. He won't even look at me." _

_"...Oh." Ino said, then looked over in her direction. They were sitting a little ways up from Konoha watching the sun set. Everything seemed so calm and Ino couldn't stand it._

_"Well quit your worrying. You've got Naruto, right? You never needed Sasuke, Sakura." _

_"I guess... But Naruto has his own problems. He's got training and trying to deal with everyday life." Sakura mumbled._

_"So are you. Look. Sasuke obviously had his issues. I still can't believe it either. But he's super hot, now isn't he?" Ino said with a smirk as she glanced over at Sakura. _

_"...Yeah." Sakura responded after a few moments. Ino sighed gently._

_"C'mon. There are plenty of guys out there. There's Naruto."_

_"Naruto...? That would be like dating my brother, Ino."_

_"...Well fine. Theres Shikamaru."_

_"Too lazy."_

_"Chouji?"_

_"...Eh. No thanks."_

_"Ooh theres that cutie on Team Eight. Kiba? Or was it Shino? I can't remember. But he's got kick ass shades."_

_"I haven't talk to many other guys. Look. I don't want to get hooked up. That's not what I wanted to talk to you about." Sakura said while she gazed at the slowly setting sun._

_"Than what it is? I have more important things to do anyway." She lied._

_"I'm...leaving tomorrow."_

_"Leaving your team? Why? I know Sasuke is gone and Naruto can be kind of a dumbass but tha-"_

_"No. I'm leaving Konoha. You're the only person I've told. I'm planning on telling Naruto tonight. I trust you two." Sakura closed her eyes to refrain from tears. _

_"..." Ino wasn't the type to put an arm around the shoulder for comfort. She normally gave a smack and a few forced out compliments. But this was different._

_"I have my reasons." Sakura mumbled. She tried hard but the tears squeezed their way out from under her eye lids and down her cheek. Sakura pulled her knees up to her chest._

_"I can't stay here, Ino! I just can't! I won't!" She sobbed. _

_"...Hey... Look at me." Ino said, gently. Sakura turned her head slightly. She reached a hand over and put it on Sakura's forehead, removing a few strands of hair. _

_"Whatever you have to do. Go and do it." Ino smiled softly. Sakura stopped sobbing for a moment, then glanced over out at the sunset again. It was quiet for a while._

_"Ino?"_

_"What?"_

_"Thanks...for everything."_

She opened her eyes to a bathroom light and squinted a bit. This was all giving her a headache. Besides, she had been in that bathroom for two hours. It was six A.M. and time to get up.

--

Another night with no sleep at all. Sakura was pretty much used to it. If any, she got three to five hours per night. That was only if her mind was blank enough to doze off. But Sakura was ready to leave this small town and go somewhere else. It wasn't like her to stay in one place for more than two days. She earned her money by doing whatever she could: small jobs, fishing, working at small shops for a few hours, etc. Before she left Konoha, Sakura knew she had to leave to get away from things whether that meant using her healing skills or not. All those hard trainings with the Hokage, Tsunade, had basically gone to waste. Sakura wondered if Naruto was still training for anything. It always seemed he had _something_ to train for. Could he possibly be still yearning to be Hokage? At a younger age, Sakura always thought it was a silly dream. Konoha, like most villages, were normally at peace which means that the Hokages live longer. But then again, there was the incident with the Third. The past is the past.

Sakura walked along a dirt path, her hand instinctively grasping the strap of a small backpack. She felt a small breeze pick up. It reminded her of home. All of these feelings kept haunting her and whenever she tried to occupy her mind with something else, it would only push her back. This wasn't the Sakura she used to be. Of course she wasn't! That's why she left Konoha. To become someone she wasn't and and run away from her fears. Sakura believed she was weak. She had only made it so far with her friends and everything she tried to do alone just blew up in her face.

"Maybe I should go home." Sakura mumbled to herself. Naturally, she'd be worried about her parents and if they were alright. But her friends seemed to be calling her back as the days went on.

"I wasn't such a failure when I was around them. I tried to prove that I could live on my own and for six years I've been a bum. My days are surviving on what little money I make. I wanted to forget my friends. But all I've been doing was sitting up at night thinking about them." She sighed and stopped. Sakura opened the bag on her back and with her map, she figured she was only a day or so away from Konoha. She was curious and nervous all at the same time. What exactly had she missed all these years? Would they still accept her back after she had just picked up and left? Her cheeks flushed. Did Sasuke notice her dissapearance? She shook her head. No...That wasn't like him to take note of such a thing. Maybe it was time for her to stop clinging onto him. She was still unsure of what a kiss may feel like. And had not experienced the thrill of running her fingers through a loved one's hair. Sakura isolated herself from other men, wanting to make sure the curse of falling in love again would stay far from her. That empty feeling followed her around everywhere she went, everytime she laid down to sleep, and every breath she took. She stopped walking and closed her eyes. That breeze returned to her. It seemed to blow away her childish fears and thoughts. Opening her eyes, Sakura looked down the dirt road and smiled.

"I'm going home."

**Again, thanks to lovely Nella for editing it for me :3**


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